When you combine potty training and Great Lent..

Johnny, yelling to me from the bathroom the other day,
"Mama, I went poo poo on the potty and Jesus died on the cross!!!"

I include this picture because if you look closely you see his chonies peeking out. Yep, he's potty trained. Hurray!
Also, it's his first time bowling and pretty darn cute.

8 years

This picture always makes me laugh. Why are we sitting so far apart? I suppose it's because we had only been dating a few months and Evan was meeting my parents for the first time. One of them took the picture. We were so young!
Eight years ago I married Evan. I was twenty and he was twenty-two. We had no idea what life had in store for us. We weren't orthodox yet, he had not finished college, I had never lived on my own and got my drivers license only weeks before our wedding. We were definitely young and maybe a little stupid but I think things turned out pretty well. Between a sassy toddler, a teething baby and loads of laundry I haven't had a chance to get terribly sentimental and gush over our love but I did dig up a these old pictures and they make me happy. I love this man and he loves me. May God grant us many more years!

Sweet x2

I love these pictures of Pearl and her pal, Jonas. Jonas belongs to my dear friend, Shae. We got to be pregnant together for the second time with these cuties. Jonas is exactly a month older than Pearl and we love watching them interact. Pearl, who is very excitable, mostly just slaps and smiles at him, while Jonas, who is more quiet and sweet, stares back at her with a "what the heck" sort of expression. They are very cute!

Where we've been, what we've done....

My parents, who live in England, were in California for couple weeks visiting their newest grand baby, Elinor. The wonderful thing was that it worked out for my whole family (brother and his wife and baby, sister, her husband and two kids) to meet up at Disneyland. We went to Disneyland the first day and the Disney California park the next. I hadn't been since right before Evan and I got married eight years ago. It was really different being back with my own children. We made the mistake of riding Pirates of the Caribbean first. Johnny was terrified. He's just never seen anything like it and it was all too overwhelming. It took him awhile to warm up to other rides after that but by midday he was having fun. I was just enjoying being with my siblings an their kids as well as some extended family that joined us on the first day. We were also able to celebrate my Dad's 60th birthday together. It's rare that I get to spend time with my whole family and it's made me miss them all more and wish we all lived closer.
I have a ticket that allows me one more visit to either park until the end of the month. Anyone want to meet me there? I know some of you have passes. Let me know!

a first..

Pearl is getting a little too big for her tummy tub (sigh). We put her in the bath with Johnny last night. She was pretty excited about the whole thing and she was extremely slippery. I am enjoying seeing them play as much as they really can at this point. What I really love is that he genuinely enjoys her. As challenging as it can be to raise multiple children, it's really beautiful to watch them and realize that they will have each other forever. I pray for wisdom in guiding their relationship to be one of lasting friendship and support.

in motion

evan put this together. fun!

Half

Pearlie is six months today. She is my chubby, healthy and very happy girl. At her doctors appointment last week she weighed in at 18.5 lbs and is 28 inches long. (off the charts!) I am pretty amazed and blessed by what a content and sweet baby she is. She is, however, very attached to her family; adores her Papa and can't get enough of her crazy big brother. He is the only one who can always make her laugh. She gets the giggles with him and it entertains all of us. We've had some very warm days and it's been so nice to be outside at the park or the lake. What I really love is being able to put summer dresses on her and show off those chunky arms and legs!

Watching Johnny nap today, it struck me that this kid is growing up fast! We have so much fun these days but I know he's not always going to want to be with his mama. He probably won't be calling me "mama' at all. Here are some things I would want the teenage Johnny to know about the two year old Johnny.

-You think I am VERY funny.
-You still have no idea what guns are. When I asked you about one at an arcade you said it was a telescope.
-You wear my nursing cover (hooter hider) as a superhero cape and fly around the house.
- You love music and will tell us what instrument is being played. ie.."that's a banjo!'..."that guys playing a trumpet!" You're usually right.
- You tell me you love me around 10 times a day, quite randomly. Sometimes you even proclaim it when we are out in public.
- You love your Papa. He lets you stall him and play for a good half hour when your supposed to be going to bed.
-You like to dance with me and you call me the princess and say that you are the lumberjack.
- You are very interested in Jesus and the Saints. You even named named your stuffed animals, St. Herman and St. John.(of Damascus) I think they are your two favorites right now.
- You LOVE watching music videos on youtube. This is your new favorite.

-You still let me get away with calling you whatever silly, sweet term of endearment I want.

I love you, bubbie!

Swinging on a Sunday Afternoon

thanks to evans camera phone for capturing some or our sweet, slow day.

A Pearl

with her round face and smooth white skin, i think she looks like a little pearl

Obviously, blogging more was not one of my new years resolutions.
A belated happy new year to all of you, nonetheless. We had a really nice Christmas in town with family. Our new years was understandably low key. Evan and I did pop a bottle of champagne this year, so that was fun. Man, I love that stuff! The highlight of the past few weeks was the birth of my beautiful new niece. It is strange to think of my little brother as a dad but I know they are both wonderful, loving parents and I cannot wait to get my hands on little Elinor.
On the Sunday of Epiphany we undressed our house of all it's Christmas decor. As pretty as all the lights and wreaths were, I like having my pictures and paintings back on the walls! With the return to everyday life I have had a really hard time find moments to post anything. I do feel much more settled into being a mother of two, but I still feel like I barely get by just taking care of their needs let a lone everything else. I have been trying to get the house in order which has filled any spare time I have.
But now that I have some time, I thought I'd give a little update on the kids since it's been awhile.
Johnny is 2 1/2 and is busy, strong, defiant, funny, smart, sensitive and talkative. (all of those are understatements.) We get so much joy and entertainment with the things he says and thinks. Like how he thinks the guardian angel icon by his bed is GORDON the angel. Or how he tries to stall when we put him to bed. As Evan goes to leave the room the following conversation will take place;
Johnny-" Wait, Papa. I hab a question."
Papa- "What it is, Johnny?"
Johnny-"Do you wub me? "
Papa-" Yes, I love you. "
Johnny- "Let's talk about that, Papa. Does Mama wub me? Does Pearl wub me? Does Grandma wub me?..." you get the picture.
I have been realizing again and again that I really shouldn't leave Pearl alone in the room with him. One day I ran upstairs to put something away, leaving Pearl laying on a blanket on the floor and Johnny playing with his toys. I was upstairs no more than a minute when Johnny exclaims," I am jumping over Pearl!! Hurray I did it!!" Or just a couple days ago I left them sitting together and walked out of the room. I heard happy squeals from both of them and assumed everything was cool. I returned to find her sucking on his toe! Ugh!
Potty training and church behavior are the two challenges we face right now. I am not letting them get the best of me, though. After a few stressful and extremely NOT fun days of potty training I've decided to be more relaxed with him and brainstorm on ways to make it fun again and maybe even wait for more cues from him that he's interested. As for church, I just think it is unreasonable for me to expect a two year old to be quiet and stand for nearly two hours, so we bring what we can to engage him like a few books or pencil and paper, discipline when it's necessary but over all try to be understanding.
I can't believe how quickly the last two years have gone and that my baby is a kid.
Uh oh, babies waking up and Johnny's losing interest in his toys..I better speed this up..
My Pearl is getting so big and has completely left the fragile, sleeps through everything, snugly, new baby phase. She is a squealy, smiley, wiggly and chunky girl. We are all having so much fun with her. She adores her Papa and brother and kind of spazzes out when she's excited. She is very attached to me and enjoys taking in this big world from my arms. But as long as she's there she will smile and babble to just about anyone. She has been rolling for a few months now and is getting close to sitting up on her own. I love this phase, they can sit and play but can't go anywhere just yet. It's great!
Okay, Johnny is tearing the house apart and baby is now awake. Times up.

Chist is Born! Glorify Him!

Merry Christmas, friends!

In Anticipation

Scenes from our home as we prepare for the glorious birth of Christ.

Where has the time gone?

I can't believe November came and went and it's been well over a month since my last post. It's been a very full month for us. It all started off with a visit from my parents who live in England. They hadn't met Pearl yet and it was so fun to show her off when she is starting to develop such a cute personality and give lots of sweet smiles. She is very charming! Johnny also loved his time with his Nonnie and Poppie.After their visit and my trip up to Palmdale and Simi Valley to see even more family, before I knew it Thanksgiving was here. We spent the day with Evan's mom and siblings. Saving the best for last, we ended our already great month with the beautiful baptism of our daughter. She did so well, and it was a wonderful day for us and we are thankful for all the family and friends who shared it with us! I know this is kind of brief, I am just too tired to get into all the details right now. Since having my second child I don't have the time during to the day to blog and at night when they are both asleep I just want to be with Evan and enjoy the peace that only a mother whose children are both sweetly sleeping knows.
A friend of ours from church made this slide show with the photos he took from the baptism, I thought I'd let you all get a glimpse into the beautiful service and you get to see how much Pearl has grown!.

Happy Me!

Here we go, six things making me happy..
-two mornings in a row of my two year old going poo in the potty. (didn't realize just how happy this would make me)
-homemade rolls and yummy soup eaten on a cool fall night. (last nights dinner)
-a clean kitchen (okay, technically it's only almost clean. I still need to mop)
-the funny things my son says. like, " i not pretty, i a lumberjack!"
-when evan does really funny voices while reading books to the kids. (he has us all cracking up)
-the monkey and the frog.

This was kind of fun..

Smoke and Ashes

... everywhere, but we are home. Sadly, many are not, including atleast one family from our church. All the different stories of how this fire has changed people's lives are being told. Some are really heartbreaking and others quite beautiful. For me, I am just made me more grateful for my family and friends and a little less concerned with my stuff. That's always a good thing. All those who have lost are in my prayers and on my heart. Thanks for all the concern and the prayers said. We ended up stayeing with Evan's mom who took such good care of us and Johnny loved his long slumber party with Grandma. It was a very relaxing evacuation, except for the hour where the fire almost evacuated us from our evacuation spot. Needless to say, we were happy to come home yesterday morning. The internet connection was down, so I couldn't blog any sooner. Our church is just fine, however, Pearls baptism will be postponed. The Bishop is sending a Chancellor of our Diocese to visit our community this weekend. which I think is just wonderful!
So, life goes on for the Keelings..I've been cleaning and trying to keep Johnny entertained since the air is too gross for outside play. Although, today his Grandpa came and drove him to the beach where the air was clean and the weather cool. I guess it's about time I put some recent pictures of Pearl up. She has changed from the newborn to a chunky, smiley, happy baby. By the way, I feel have to admit thatI don't think I am doing a very good job with this whole transition to two kids. The house is often a mess, meals are not terribly thought out, I am just happy when I make anything, and I am a wreck to behold. In case I've ever made myself sound like I have it all under control or something please know that I don't. It's been hard. But, I do have two amazing kiddos, and a loving, hardworking husband that don't seem to mind too much. Atleast for now. I know I have to cut myself some slack, but somedays I just feel very overwhelmed by the smallest chore. Okay, I feel better having blurted that out.
Here are some recent pics..

our cities on fire

As many of you are aware,these Santa Ana winds have created horrible fire conditions in San Diego County, as well as other parts of Southern California. We evacuated our home around 7 am this morning, the fire was just beginning to enter the outskirts of Escondido and that was close enough for us. We headed south and are safe in Point Loma with family. We are most concerned for our church family and friends living in Rancho Bernardo where the fire is destroying neighborhoods. Our church itself is in the path of the fire. Pearl was going to be baptized next Sunday, I just pray that St. John's will still be standing. I ask for your prayers for those who are in harms way or who have already lost their homes and for all the lives being affected by this.

Have a great weekend, everyone! I'll try to be back with a real post next week.

Pearl at Five Weeks..

...Is giving very sweet smiles when we work really hard for them.

...Is growing some cute, squishy cheeks that seem to get bigger by the day.

...Loves her big brother.


I admire all of you bloggers who write with wit and intelligence. Detailing your days, your thoughts and opinions. For now, I am just posting pics of the kids. It's about all I can manage these days. I know this will pass, I am hoping that the books I plan to to begin reading this weekend will inspire some good posts. We shall see. Oh! In exciting news, I am being churched this Saturday evening. I am really looking forward to getting back to Liturgy and introducing her to our church family. Happy weekend to all!